Evaluation - Ella Trainor

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Maisie Linnane - Question 4

How did you use new media technologies in the research, planning, constructing and evaluation stages?

During the research stage the Internet was the most vital tool. We used ‘Google’ to search for things that we needed to know. The most popular websites we visited was ‘You Tube’ and ‘Wikipedia’, although there were many others as well.

Wikipedia was used to find out things like the characteristics of our genre and information on the artist of the song ‘Lenka’. We used ‘You Tube’ to research techniques and to watch other videos of the same/similar genre; this helped us to get ideas for our own music video. All of the information we needed was easy to find we made everything much more simple during this stage.

Throughout all stages of our coursework we used blogger to track our progress on our group blog. (www.fantasyandliesproductions.blogspot.com)

For everything we done, we wrote a post about it. It showed our work from beginning to end. Tasks that we performed together we would add a label for all our names, however if it was something we had done individually we would only add the label of our name to show the reader who was responsible for what parts of the project. We would also use labels to show what our post was about and make it easier to find certain posts, for example, if we were writing about Photoshop, we would add the label ‘Photoshop’, this would mean that we could click on that label and see all posts relating to using Photoshop.

We used Adobe Photoshop to edit our still photos. These included all the images used in the video for stop motion, and the images used for the digipak and magazine advert. We used this program to perform a variety of tasks such as, removing the date from images, cutting parts of the image out to put on a different background (mostly just a plain white background for a cleaner more professional appearance.) Problems we faced when using Photoshop were that it would sometimes take a long time to edit just a small amount of an image, for example when we were cutting the date out of an image, we may do a small bit but it would not look good so we would have to start again. I done the majority or the editing within Photoshop, by spending a lot of time of Photoshop I was able to perform tasks quicker.

We used Final Cut Express to edit our music video. I have used this before which made the whole thing much easier as we already had good knowledge of the program. We managed to get through the whole production with very few problems within the program. Also, we had very little knowledge of lip-syncing, we had performed a short preliminary task to practice lip-syncing in Final Cut before starting the task, which did help us. As expected, after using the program for a while we got much better at lining up the lip-syncing with the music and I was very happy with out results. We would have liked to be able to perform more complex edits and use more professional filters, however as the software we had was only the express version it did not allow us to show our ideas and skills to the fullest and I would have much preferred to work on a full version of editing software, for example, Final Cut Pro. I still believe that we worked very well with what we had and produced a video of a high standard.

We used my dad’s camera, which was a Nikon P300. I was extremely pleased with the results. We used this alongside a standard tripod. The quality of the video and images were very good. This defiantly had a big contribution to the overall outcome of our work. Many of our shots were using the tripod, however we varied this with handheld shots. We also varied the angles to help portray the story of the song. The camera worked well under all circumstances, for example the inside shots, outside shots, close up and long shots. The only problems we had were that we ran out of battery on most of our filming, however it was towards the end of the day. This was because we tried to take a lot more footage than we would actually need to ensure we could produce the highest quality video, we did not want to miss anything that could have benefited our work. As the majority of our filming was done in a park, this meant that the battery for the camera could not be recharged, as we had no energy source. In hindsight, I would have ensured we had a spare battery or set up a way to recharge the camera (by having a car charger etc.) Although it was a problem we made sure it did not affect our filming, we planned extra time to film incase any problems were to occur, this meant we had plenty of time, so we managed to get all the footage we needed. Another problem we faced was the amount of memory space, we had plenty of memory cards, however they each contained limited space, this meant we had to constantly swap memory cards around, this wasted time and could be organised much better in the future.

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Group Meeting - Subject:Filming Locations

We have had a group meeting, during which we discussed all filming locations for our music video. Here is our filmed meeting. 

(INSERT HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Album Cover Drafts

This is the sketches for our first & second draft for our album cover.

Problems with Digipack

We have had some difficulties with our digipack because once we thought we had completed it and went to insert it into the template, it was the wrong size and we had to start over.

Maisie Linnane - Question 3

What have you learned from your audience feedback?

During the pre-production of our music video we created our target demographic. This is who we came up with:

"Alice; she is 19 years old & lives in Brentwood. She enjoys watching TV channels such as E4 & Sky Living. In relation to music channels, she watches Viva, 4music, Mtv, The Box & Smash Hits. Her favourite genre of music is Pop/Indie & Indie/Rock.

She typically reads fashion magazines, for example, Vogue, Elle and Look; she also has a Rolling Stones monthly subscription from the US, as she is extremely passionate about music. She also reads the film magazine, Empire.

Alice pursues lots of hobbies when she is not studying, for instance, spending time with friends & listening to music on her iPod or on radio stations, XFM, Capital FM & Radio 1. She also likes playing guitar, writing songs, and horse riding, jogging & going to festivals such as Virgin Festival & Reading Festival.

Her two favourite films are Juno & Twilight. Ellie Goulding is her best-loved artist & You Me At Six are her favourite band.

Shopping centers Alice goes to consist of Lakeside, Bluewater, Westfield & the West End. Her most commonly visited shops are Topshop, Urban Outfitters, River Island, Selfridges, All Saints & New Look, there are also many boutiques and vintage shops in London that she buys lots of her clothes from."

We thought that the artist that is quite similar to the one in our video was Ellie Goulding. Therefore our target market is very similar. Her target demographic is young females, aging from 13-24. This is who we were also trying to appeal to.

After looking at videos by Ellie Goulding we came up with a few ideas that we would like to use within our work. For example much of her work is set outdoors which again give the naturalistic look. She used lip-syncing throughout the majority of her videos, and although some of them showed a narrative they were mostly concept driven and performance based. We thought that by using some of the themes that Ellie Goulding used within her work we would be able to ensure that we would appeal to our target audience, as they were similar to hers. However we did not want our work to be compared to Ellie Goulding’s, as we wanted our work to be original.

There was variations within her videos, some were very simplistic, and some had quite a lot going on with CGI. Although I liked the look of her more complex videos, I preferred the more natural look for my music video and it would very much suit our chosen song more. This is why we chose Valentines Park, Ilford, in particular as the size of the park means that there are many areas of the park that look completely different, we thought that it was a very good location as it looks as if we had used various locations when really it was all in one place.

We also added a picture of ‘Alice’, therefore we wanted to costumes in the video to be things that she would choose to wear, and this will help her to relate to the artist. We chose outfits that were a bit quirky. We had her wearing a big fur coat with a short dress and holding an umbrella when wearing shorts, crop top and wooly hat. She was also walking bare foot around a bench. We wanted these outfits to be a bit different but we didn’t want them to take the attention away from what else was going on in the frame.

The theme of love and relationships, which runs through, our work is one that young people can relate to. That is why we chose to focus on this theme, as we wanted to use it to our advantage so that we could get the audience’s attention. We wanted the viewer to be able to sympathise with the artist. For example, if a young boy was the main artist of the video and he was talking about his relationships and our target audience was young females, they would not have been able to relate to how he was feeling or what he was going through.  Therefore, as the artist in in the same gender/age group as the target audience, it makes it much easier for them to understand the message that was put out by the video. 

By using certain camera shots, it helped the audience to understand how the artist was feeling which would help them connect with her. For example, we used high angle shots to show that she was feeling upset and confused.

The feedback we received on our final music video, digipak and magazine advert was very positive, which we were extremely pleased with.

Once we had nearly finished our music video we posted a draft on ‘YouTube’ for our peers and family to watch. This received very good feedback, and although we did get a few points of constructive criticism, we used this to make the final piece better.

The most common points  we received were:
   
   The first shot was good as it looked simple and pure 

•       The lighting in all of our shots were very good

•       They don't like the angle looking down on her as they think it looks as though she is below the viewer. 

•       They think that we have understood the idea of the music well.

•       They like the settings and think they match the genre of our song

•       They think that it fits all the codes and conventions of the artist. 

•       Some lip syncing was off

•       Good effects, enjoyed it

•       Less of the squirrel shot

•       Stop motion was really good

•       Really liked the stop motion & the split screen. The locations were good & fitted well with the song

•       Favourite part was the 'I Want My Money Back' bit (split screens)

•       Do more relating visuals to lyrics

•       Really good ideas, loved the beginning shot

•       Fantastic, have managed to capture a constant atmosphere so far through the film & cover, keep it up with rest of the editing

•       Excellent camera work, covers need developing & advert magazine needed, play with fonts.

•       The different locations and costumes show how much work has gone into it

•       Although the split screen isn’t perfect they thought it looked very good

•       It makes them want to watch the full completed version

•       Lighting is very natural looking

•       Some shots were too long, of performer just singing.

We discussed all of the comments we received and were very pleased for the overall positive feedback. However, we took the negative feedback and made sure we corrected our video, as we wanted to make sure that it looked professional and was at the highest possible standard.

The feedback we got from the final digipak were:

•       It matched the genre of music very well

•       It meets the needs of the audience

•       Recognisable if it was amongst other CD’s in a shop

•       Unique to others they have seen

•       Has a professional look to it

•       Simple, but in a positive way as it gives all the information which is needed and still manages to look good

•       The effects of the images is good, as it keeps to the animated feel to the digipak however shows the artist.

•       The font matches the style of music and video well

The feedback from the magazine advert we received was:

•       Professional looking

•       Matches the branding of the digipak

•       Compliments the whole product

•       Would stand out if flicking through a magazine

•       Shows the personality of the artist through the images

•       Helps the audience to get familiar with the artist after looking at the advert very briefly

•       Having the album on the advert will help the audience find it quicker when looking for it on a shelf

•       Having the high star rating helps it to look professional 

Check my multimedia evaluation website!!! 

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Maisie Linnane - Question 2

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

We have used a few different branding elements that we have carried through our music video, digipak and magazine advert.

We have carried the theme of nature throughout, by having the video set in a park for the majority of the shots. This is shown within our digipak as we use images of the artist standing in the trees. Also on the magazine advert you can see the background of the five images are leaves, which again represents nature.

We have also used the theme of love throughout, by using hearts that symbolize love, we made sure these were present amongst our video, we used heart shaped sticky notes placed in a heart shape, along with two heart shaped balloons. This theme was carried through to out digipak, as the text that was used has many heart shapes within it.  Also the inside image of the digipak is a cartoon heart, this is so the theme was carried through out.

We have also carried through a happy mood throughout as we show her having fun playing hide and seek in a park. Although the storyline of the song is about how she is confused in a relationship and letting go of her feelings, we didn’t want the mood of the song to be sad. This is why, towards the end of the video she was happy to let go of her emotions, which allowed us to use happy emotions throughout the video and portray our artist in a positive way. This is also shown within the magazine advert, as the images we have used of the artist show her pulling funny faces.

The whole video, digipak and advert show how it is aimed at girls by the use of flowers, pink colours and hearts.  We show this in our digipak and magazine advert by using pink fonts, pink border, purple filter and different animated hearts and flowers. Throughout the video, the ‘girly’ look is also shown through costume and setting, by using floral patterns in her clothing it shows the nature theme as well as aiming to a female market.

Our digipak and magazine advert shows elements from meal media products as we used a barcode on the back and some small print, which is almost always found on the back of CD’S. We also placed some reviews on our magazine advert and an image of the album. Also on the magazine advert we put logo’s of retailers that would sell our album and logo of the record label and the artist’s website.

Through all the research I have done into read digipak’s and magazine advert I have found that they generally show an image of the artist. This is why we decided to conform to this convention.

I do think that although our digipak and magazine advert are unique to any others we have seen within real media products, we were defiantly influenced by the use of cartoon and animation. We liked the idea of using cartoons as we thought that it matched the style and genre of the song. 

Check my multimedia evaluation website!!! 
www.wix.com/maisielinnane/a2evaluation